BMO Financial Group Reviews

I have been working at BMO Financial Group

Pros – BMO has a very sound background for their Commercial Banking teams. There is a reason why M&I failed and BMO came in to take over the company. I can definitely see BMO implementing some profitable ideas into the old M&I standards which will bring in new profitable business.

Cons – The only downside that I have experienced with BMO is the corporate structure, being so large, can make the recruiting and hiring process a lengthy one.

Advice to Senior Management – Keep your same conservative approach and backgrounds but trust the employees to go out and do their best to bring in new business.

Yes, I would recommend this company to a friend

I have been working at BMO Financial Group

Pros – Good work environment
Good compensation packages (401k, pension, insurance, ect)
Professional co-workers
Ability to "move up"
Lots of opportunity to provide value

Cons – Need more communication from Canada about the US
Need direction from managment on the future of legacy M&I bank employees

I worked at BMO Financial Group

Pros – BMO is committed to diversity, great customer experience, and fairness to employees. There is tremendous opportunity for advancement at more junior levels in both the US and Canada.

Cons – More and more decision making is being done in Toronto, leaving those in the US with little chance to impact the company. Decision making is frustratingly slow and prone to reversal if full concensus can't be obtained. Very little recognition of the competitive nature of the US market; BMO only sees the other Canadian banks as competitors, and those banks cooperate more than compete. Top US employees have limited career advancement opportunities unless they move to Toronto.

Advice to Senior Management – As BMO continues to expand in the US more decisions will need to be delegated to those who run that market. Canadian banking is not like US banking, and BMO must learn that lesson soon to succeed. Speed and conviction will be important to BMOs future. BMO can't please everyone and must make hard choices about what is most important- both internally and externally.

Yes, I would recommend this company to a friend

I have been working at BMO Financial Group

Pros – income is higher then other banks

Cons – push products, sell sell sell

Advice to Senior Management – less micro management

I have been working at BMO Financial Group

Pros – The people are great to work with for the most part
BMO is still hiring new grads from college (although the training is sub-par)

Cons – Outdated internal systems hinder productivity
Upper Management follows a "drink the kool-aid" mentality where they constantly promote all the great things the bank is doing while hard questions are never asked or answered and there is no feedback on the integration of systems.
The seamless integration of M&I is doubted by many BMO employees as the existing issues of the bank go unanswered.

Advice to Senior Management – Give employees the technological resources and systems to perform their jobs more efficiently

No, I would not recommend this company to a friend

I worked at BMO Financial Group

Pros – While the salary seem to be lower, the benefits are above average and geared towards those with a family. The people at BMO are very nice, people you would like to have as your neighbors.

Cons – The Canadian management does not seem to accurately value US operations or staff. While the employees are nice, they don't seem to be the cream of the crop and seem more accepting of the status quo than superior performance. There was more emphasis on doing it "there way" instead of a better way.

Advice to Senior Management – Don't confuse the recent bank stock price performance with superior operations and strategy. The limited competition between the few Canadian banks and elevated commodity prices are more likely to account for how Canadian banks outperform US banks. The culture of the bank was to avoid risk and not manage risk, which frequently put bank customers at an unwarranted disadvantage as a bank customer.

I have been working at BMO Financial Group

Pros – good pay, managers are compentent, fair and honest. Compensation is good compared to other places. Lots of opportunity to advance if you want.

Cons – Small workspaces. They never fire anyone, so there are alot of old hats sticking around who should have been gone a long time ago.

Advice to Senior Management – Love the focus on customer service and the fact that there is a clear, ambitious strategy for growth. Keep up the good work!

Yes, I would recommend this company to a friend

I worked at BMO Financial Group

Pros – Met and worked with some great people.
Good benefits, decent vacation.
Better incentive if you work in a profit center

Cons – Company promotes work, life balance and regular reviews, but managers are not consistant with how this is applied.

Advice to Senior Management – Invest in technology to have one general ledger platform being used company wide and account names and numbers are consistant.

Yes, I would recommend this company to a friend

I have been working at BMO Financial Group

Pros – my branch was great
Overall BMO is only good if you get a decent branch to work at.

Cons – pay is really low around $14/hr
Overall BMO is only good if you get a decent branch to work at.

Advice to Senior Management – need coaching skills

No, I would not recommend this company to a friend – I'm not optimistic about the outlook for this company

I worked at BMO Financial Group full-time

Pros – - great health care benefits
- systematic traning
- lots of resources to do your work

Cons – - retail banking: very political
- beaureaucratic
- the banking system appears to be a tad archaic compared to other big banks
- micro management